Door for industrial ovens



Sept. 28, 1943.

c. F. MAYER DOOR FOR INDUSTRIAL OVENS Filed May 9, 1941 5 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR.

Carl F. Mayer ATTORNEY.

Sept. 28, 1943. c. F. MAYER DOOR FOR INDUSTRIAL OVENS 3 Sheets-Shet 2 Filed May 9, 1941 Carl P'Ma l l|ll||| |l lllllll I INVENTOR' yer A TTORNEY.

Sept. 28, 1943. c. F. MAYER DOOR FOR INDUSTRIAL OVENS.

Filed May 9, 1941 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 A4] l I l I l l I IL Ill II FIG. 7.

INVENTORQ BY Carl F Mayer ATTORNEY.

ooonimnzn musnmjoynnsi J st milligram;mlnis niasm sagate ageless; (o1.

' Th in o relates r ri o n connect/ionthatifiwilldii'ect the upper pcrtion ofi the kind-usedfor drying paintftonbaliing cores; the-door toward closed positio'n; to sorelate=the m' P 'P Q fi f l j mQ dooi fio -its fiexible susbension"elementsorchains particularlywith the'do'ors ofsuch'ovens; as tocause it to hang-in such away asto 'ex'r- Patented Sept.28, 1943 1 l a a ffl if i s tt e c as o;whicli reieren e fis hancelth'e-sealin action betweenthelower pore I mada explosions occasionally occur; and unless tionof thefdoor ridfdvenfj tb pnovideyjadjace'nfi provisions are made for" instantly venting" the" tlif laiterayedgespf t'he doorycoperating sealing oven ofthe-eyzcessive pressure thus created; dam rhea'ris-"on he door and oven'that 'are soinclined age to the oven'structure proportionalto the, to" the vertical course ofiniovement of the-- dean pou erof the explosion is "practicallycerta n to that; at the? beginning "of the-"upward ftravel ofi ensue; H tfie doory "*saiar means will? separate thmu"'gfhout "The present invention? pertains" especially to the'- extent thereof; thereby to obviate friction yerticallymovable or-so-ca'lldiierticalliftdoors between the sealing means, and to provide if- 'de for; ovensiofi-the class mentioned; and heretosired; or if required unden certain conditions, fore doors offthissort' have ,be'enfguided adjacent rleasableorso called*ep1osion latoh means fon their lateral, edges Iinwjayfs or channels which maintaining the lower portion bf the door in restrict them to; a definite, course of movementl sealing relationitothe oven in opposition to pr ac andf preclude any appreciable shifting of the tical' zmessivefinternal pressures; such as door in a direction in linqwith andfiaway from encountered inthe normaloperation=ofthe ovenf the doorbpening of'theovem'such as would re- The foregoing objeetsg with'bthershereinaftn lieve' excessive internal "pressure: b v appearing; are attained in the em'b'odimerit of g In the case of," ovens, Irqu 'pbed "with/hinged the-invention illustrated im 'meecqom sn mg doors} attempts havefbeen made tomeet tlie drawings'wherein'l igJIis a'fr6ntTelevati6nEoi arr above condition by; providing self-ureleasin'glatch industrial'oven incorporating'the-dnvention'; mechanismg f but when anflejxplosion' occurs in 21s a fragmentary sideelevation of the; oven? such anovenl that; is of suificient' force td'over-j Fig; 3 isa fragmentary plan, 'with certain parts corneftheiresistanceofthe latch mechanism the broken awaj and othenparts shown in seetion doorsf are swung openflwith such' .viole'riciefasfto to better' illustrate the seal between one of the "ehdang' r any,w r m nwi o msyhaw m l reach edges" ofthedoorandthe adjacent portion or thereof} y W I v I the oven; Figi 4 is'a"view siniilar=to Fig? i Among the objects,cifniy inventionare-tto pro-1 on a considerably larger scale'and showing the vide inanfindustrial oven structure, a door that top portion of the d'o'or and 'the adjacent poris: suspended from aboveand'that will swingopen tion of 'the ovenin -vertica-l section} Fig. 5isaz enoug tofvent the oven, inlicase ofexces'siye inhorizontal s'ectio'naldetailfon afurther'enlargfd eternal pressure, such asfthatk resulting fro m an scale, thesame-bei'ng taken on the'li'ne 5 -506 exnlosio'n; and will then swinggback bygravity Fig, 4; Fig. (ji's a fragmentary perspective iew towardlclosedvnositionyto providelayertical lift of the ovenarid door showing the door spaced dbpr'forfoyensvoflthe. kindinquestionfthat is from the oven as-might oceuras the result of sus iended throuahQflxible elements; such as an ez'plosionwithin theoven; and"Figs. '7 andB' chains froinlarelatively high elevation so that 40 are details, at: right angles to' each other; of the the ,door has a penaul ag mn when blown so called' explosion latchand? the adiia'cent' porfn,and will, by its own eight notpply close tions of the oven* door andifioorr': 1

I autoniatically,but be restrained, from; swinging The even proper; :which I for 'the purposemf:

further t s a y'i g th oven thus claims Ialso'termzthe enclosure, Sis: designated eliminating, orat least minimizing the danger generally: by: the reference-numeral usual,

ofinjury to anyonenear the door; to proyide if the ovenonenclosure consistsof: a; walled-struoeo desired or in some caseslif lequired, a separable turefabricated of insulated panels: anal-frame connection between the topedge oftheldoorland members, the front wall 2'having a; door opening;

the oiienstructure thatlassumt ieflective' condi}: 3 that is surroundedkby a.framed 'The lintel of, tion'asthe door close s?andthatserves'asa hinge the door irame includesa forwardly projecting on whichtliedoor swingsputwardly enough; to ledge 5,best shown, in Figs. 4.and16. Theoven n t the oven in thelcaseof ajminorexplosion, or enclosure. Iis built uponaconcretefioor 8, p: t a s a a allows the door to swing and r ising' fromthe floor along theopposite sides open to a furthcr eggtentinj casaof'almajorleif V blosion; to so de'signand construct the separable 5 lower ends embedded in the fi 3' posed of the door opening 3; preferablymith their i l2 are two chain-pocket wheelsll, and where the shaft projects beyondthe left'hand end of the beam l2, as the parts are viewed in Fig. 1,

a similar but somewhat larger wheel I8 is fastened to the shaft. Associated with the latter wheel, and including a hub portion that is loosely mounted upon the shaft [6, is a unit l9 that ineludes eyes through whichan endless hand chain 2! is guided in operative relation to the a wheel [8. This hand chain depends alongside alcornerof, theoven in convenient reach .of a person standing on the floor. The frame structurecomprising the guides 9 and cross beam [2 is suitably bracedby diagonal ties 22 and structural elements 23, thelatter-being shown as extendinghorizontally rearwardly from the upper ends of the guides and as being rigidly attached thereto through gussets 24. The elements 23 may be anchored in any suitable manner, as to a framework atthe opposite end of the oven structure, similar to that above, described, provided the oven is. ofthe kind having a door at each end. 1

Arranged for vertical movement between the side flanges ll ofthe opposed guides 9 is a door 25 This door, like, the walls of the oven, is constructed of insulated panels that are held in -a marginal fabricated frame 26 from the top of which extends rearwardly a lip 21 (Fig.5. 4 and 6').-;,V Vhen the door is down in closed position this lip 2! overhangs the ledge 5, and slots 28 in I the former receive cam members 29 that are carried by said ledgeand serve, first, to draw the top portion of the docrrearwardly toward the oven and, secondly, as a separable hinge connection onv which the {door may swing outwardly at its lower end a limited distance under the influence of abnormal internal pressuresuch as mightresult from a minor explosion within the oven. To A better seal the joint between the lip 2'! and ledge 5, a strip of packing material, indicatedat 30 in Fig. 4, may be carried by one or the other of said parts. A strip3l of similar-material may also'be applied to the bottom of-the door, as shown in Figs. 4, '7 and 8, for contact with the floor 8.

Secured to the sides of the marginal frame 36 of the door are the base flanges 34 of sealing strips 35, shown as consisting of angle irons,

which cooperate with similar strips 36 that are desirably; adjustably connected, through their base flanges 31 and screws or bolts 38, to the forwardly extending flanges I l of the guides 9; The sealing strips 211C136 at each side .of the door are sdesirably inclined, downwardly and outwardly at a. suitable angle to'the vertical plane'of the I thef'strips 3G to the guides fiisto avoidls'uchac- Wcurjate workmanship" in production and fabrication of the parts as would otherwise be necessary.

Secured to the top of the marginal flange 25 of the door 25, as through anchorage means or eyes Ml, are flexible elements or chains 4| that extend upwardly and over the previously mentioned chain-pocket wheels I1 and beyond which they are connected to a counterpoise that is shown as made up of an inverted T-beam 42 to which the elements or chains 4| are attached and upon which are supported a plurality of units 43 that constitute a weight designated generally by the reference numeral '45. The anchorage means or eyes are preferably so located transversely of the top of the marginal frame 26 and with such reference to the center of gravity of the door as to throw the door slightly off balance, so to speak, and in such a direction that as it is loweredto closed position the sealing strips 35' will contact the sealing strips 36 first adjacent their lower ends. As the door settles to closed position, the inner edges of the slots 28 in the lip 21 at. the top of the door will ride down the inclined faces of the cam members 29on the ledge 5,,thereby to urge the top portion of the door inwardly so as to insure contact between the sealing strips 35 and 35 throughout thevertical extent thereof. At the same time, the 'j oint between the lip 21 and the ledge 5 will be sealed by the packinglelement 30, as Will also the joint between the bottom of the door and the floor by the packing element 3!. I a

Whilethe weight o'f the door may be sufficient' in -most casesfto retain the door closed against normal internal pressures, the door may be equipped with latch means that will automatically release in case of abnormally high internal pressures, such as those resulting from explosions. Hence, the term explosion latch which I have appliedjtosuchmeans. For the sake of clearness I have omitted the latch means from all but Figs. 7; and 8. When used, one such means is located-at thebottom of each lateral edge of the door, and as shown in detail in said views, it consists of a flat latch bolt 41 that is guided through slots'in brackets 48 that are welded or otherwise secured to the. outer surface of the sealing strip 35'. The bolt: is urged downwardly by a compression spring. 49 that surrounds the bolt and is confined between the upper bracket 48 and a washer 50 that is adapted to be adjustably connected to the bolt so as to vary the tension ofthe spring as desired'by the engagement of a cotter pin '5! on which the washer rests in anyone of several holes 52 in the bolt. The bolt is limitedfin its downward movement by the engagement of a pin' 53 thatis carried by the bolt with the top bracket 481 The lower end of the bolt is arranged to engage a keeper 55 having a parternbedded within the floor The oven is suitably heated by :means not shown, Such means may consist of the com? mon and'well known system of ducts; air heater and. impelling means by which 'airgis heatediand circulatedthrough the oven; ,3

Having thus described my inventionywhatj'I claimis: f j j g v 1 In combination with an enclosure having a door opening, a door for said opening, suspension means for the door that'isoperativeto raise andlower the doornbetween 1 open and closed 1 0-, sitions, means efiecting I a separable. pivotal conI-i. nection between the" top portion ofthe door and the adjacent portion of thefenclosure when the closed position against normal internal pressure,

said latch means yielding to release the door to relieve excessive pressure within the enclosure.

2. In combination with an enclosure having a door opening, a door for said opening that is capable of movement in a vertical direction between open and closed positions and also capable of movement in a direction substantially in line with and away from said opening, operating mechanism situated above the upper limit of movement of the door, flexible means by which the door is suspended from said mechanism, and separable connections through which the door is pivotally connected adjacent its topto the enclosure when the door is in closed position, said connections yielding under the influence of excessive pressure within the enclosure to release the door and relieve said pressure.

'3. In combination with an enclosurehaving a door opening, a door for said opening that is capable of movement in a vertical direction between open and closed positions, parts on the door along the top and bottom edges thereof for wardly facing surfaces that contact with each other, the plane ofsaid contacting surfaces be ing slightly inclined to the vertical course of movement of the door when the door is closed, and certain of said members being adjustable with respect to the element on which they are mounted.

4. In combination with anenclosure having a door opening, guides spaced outwardly from the opposite sides of the opening, a door for said opening that is capable of movement in a vertical direction intermediate said guides between open and closed positions and also capable of movement in a direction substantially in line with and away from said opening, parts on the door along the top and bottom edges thereof that close the joint between the door and enclosure along said edges, and means adjacent the lateral edges of the door for closing the joints between said edges and the enclosure when the door is closed, said means including elements mounted on the edges of the door and having inwardly facing sealing surfaces and elements carried by said guides and having outwardly facing sealing. surfaces wherewith the former surfaces contact when the door is closed, the plane of said surfaces being inclined downwardly and away from the enclosure and the beginning of the upward movement of the door.

5. In combination with an enclosure having a, door opening, a. door for said opening that is capable of movement in a vertical direction between open and closed positions and also capable of movement in a direction substantially in line with and away from said opening, means suspending the door throughout its range of movement from an elevation above the upper limit of movement of the door, the relationibetween the door and said suspension means being such as will cause the door to hang in a position i wherein its bottom is nearer the enclosure than its top, and separable connections including cam means that interengage as the door approaches closed position for directing the top of the door toward the enclosure.

6. In combination with an enclosure having a door opening, a door for said opening that is capable of movement in a vertical direction between open and closed positions and also capable of the door toward the enclosure as the door approaches closed position, and self-releasing latch mechanism carried by the door adjacent the bottom thereof for retaining the door closed against normal operating pressures within the enclosure and yielding to release the door and relieve higher pressures.

7. In combination with an enclosure having a door opening, guides rising on opposite sides of said opening, a door movable vertically between said guides between a lower position wherein the door closes the aforesaid opening and an elevated position wherein said opening is substantially uncovered, suspension means for the door that is operative to raise and lower the door betewen open and closed positions, an inwardly projecting lip extending along the upper edge of the door, an outwardly extending ledge along the lintel of the door for cooperation with said lip when the door is closed, sealing strips extending along the lateral edges of the door and having inwardly facing contact surfaces that are inclined downwardly and outwardly in slight angular relation to the vertical plane of the door opening, and similar strips carriedby the guides and having contact faces for engagement with the contact faces of the former strips when the door is in closed position, certain of said sealing being so related to the vertical course of move-' ment of the door that said surfacesseparate at strips being adjustable with respect to the ele- 

